1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multi-function button on a handle that is used to control a robotically controlled medical instrument.
2. Background Information
Historically, surgery has been performed by making large incisions in a patient to provide access to the surgical site. There has been developed instruments that allow a surgeon to perform a procedure through small incisions in the patient. The instruments include an endoscope which has a camera that allows the surgeon to view the internal organs of the patient through a small incision. Such procedures are less traumatic to the patient and have shorter recovery times than conventional surgical procedures. Endoscopic instruments have even been used to perform minimally invasive heart surgery. Blockage of a coronary artery may deprive the heart of blood and oxygen required to sustain life. The blockage may be removed with medication or by an angioplasty. For severe blockage a coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) is performed to bypass the blocked area of the artery. CABG procedures are typically performed by splitting the sternum and pulling open the chest cavity to provide access to the heart. An incision is made in the artery adjacent to the blocked area. The internal mammary artery is then severed and attached to the artery at the point of incision. The internal mammary artery bypasses the blocked area of the artery to again provide a full flow of blood to the heart. Splitting the sternum and opening the chest cavity can create a tremendous trauma to the patient. Additionally, the cracked sternum prolongs the recovery period of the patient.
Computer Motion of Goleta, Calif. provides a system under the trademark ZEUS that allows a surgeon to perform a minimally invasive surgery, including CABG procedures. The procedure is performed with instruments that are inserted through small incisions in the patient's chest. The instruments are controlled by robotic arms. Movement of the robotic arms and actuation of instrument end effectors are controlled by the surgeon through a pair of handles that are coupled to an electronic controller. The surgeon can control the movement of an endoscope used to view the internal organs of the patient through voice commands and speech recognition software.
Each medical instrument may have a plurality of functions such as motion scaling and grasper actuation. Each function requires a separate input from the end user. For example, motion scaling requires that the user pull up a corresponding graphical user interface in the system and select a desired scale. To change the scale, the surgeon must release the handles and move over to the device and/or screen. Releasing the handles may result in an undesirable movement of the medical instruments. Additionally, having to release the handles and select the scale increases the time to perform the procedure. It would be desirable to allow the surgeon to control a function without releasing the handles.